


Perfect Is An Illusion

by Overly_Obsessive_Band_Geek



Category: Descendants (2015)
Genre: D2fandomcountdown, F/M, Gen, I'm starting this late anyway, M/M, Multi, but not posted on the right days, these will be in order, why am I doing this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-07-13
Packaged: 2018-11-18 22:24:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 6,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11300070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Overly_Obsessive_Band_Geek/pseuds/Overly_Obsessive_Band_Geek
Summary: Tumblr is doing a fandom countdown to Descendants 2, these are my contributions. There might be multiple posts for some days, but even if I don't ship something there will be something for it.





	1. Mal

Mal had spent her entire life obeying orders. First her mother's, and now, in Auradon, well, everyone really. Before, she could escape, leave and know no one was watching her. But now there were always eyes, watching her every move. Shoulders back, head up, walk like a princess. She wasn't cut out for this, and she knew it. ~~~~~~~~( ~~She couldn't, wouldn't do this.~~ ) The others had slipped into the lifestyle, making it look easy, simple. Meanwhile, she struggled just to withstand everyday life in this new, shiny world. ( ~~~~" ~~I don't belong here~~!") There was no real reason for it to be so hard, was there? She didn't know. It didn't make sense. All she knew was that if she went back, everything would be familiar, and she would know what to do. ( ~~She hoped~~.) Evie was there, always, trying to make things easier, trying to help. She ended up blowing up at her, eventually at Ben too. ( ~~To much, to much, **to much**~~ **!** ) One day...She gave up. It just didn't seem worth it to keep fighting to fit into the life they were trying to give her. So, she left. ( ~~No one would miss her~~.) And, it was easier, so much more familiar. She went back to where they had been, the life she was used to. She would never understand why the others had come back for her. 

 

( ~~Why come back for something broken~~?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I...had no idea what to write for Mal, so all you get for her is this mess.


	2. Uma

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Although it's never explicitly stated to be a relationship, Uma, Harry, and Gil are in one. Uma is trans, although it also isn't explicitly stated. She doesn't really understand the concept of either of these things things. All she knows is she isn't a boy, and that she cares about Harry and Gill more than anyone else she's ever met.

After Mal and the others had abandoned them, abandoned the Isle on live TV, she had found it harder and harder to believe she would ever get off the Isle. So she had clung ever tighter to Harry and Gil. She held them in the dead of night on their ship, pressing kisses to their jawlines and staving off the panic. And they would hold her in response, whispering reassurances and never judging how she felt. Maybe during the day she had to be strong, and brave, and never falter, but at night she could forget all of it. Well, as much as one could on the Isle. But at least she could let herself be comforted by the two people she cared for above all else, and comfort them in turn. They weren't like the others, they cared about each other, even if they didn't have the words to explain it. It was still there, not going away, hovering just at the edges of every conversation and interaction they had. 

When she was younger she used to dream of Auradon, of how it would feel to live their and never want for things like food or clothing. She knew, now, that nothing worked like that, but she still wanted desperately off of the Isle. To not live among the ruins of villains. It wasn't like she wanted to rule Auradon or something like that. She just wanted to take her crew and sail the ocean. To never have to come near the Isle again. Maybe, one day, use the magic she would have if it weren't for the barrier to change her body to be a girl's. She didn't know for sure if she would do that or not, given the chance. Her body right now was just fine, if she ignored the fundamental _wrongness_ of how low her voice was when she didn't pitch it higher. Maybe that meant she wasn't evil, but by now she didn't care anymore. 

Sometimes, when the three of them were particularly antsy and feeling like doing something dangerous, they would go skinny dipping in the harbor. Well, she and Harry would. Gil didn't know how to swim and didn't really want to learn. So he would sit on the beach or in a small dingy in the harbor, watching them with a smile on his face. Meanwhile, she and Harry would dive and swim around, enjoying the chance to stretch their muscles without fighting or running for their lives. Sure, it was still dangerous, but they were capable of destroying anyone who tried to attack them. She would be the first to admit she was glad to be on the top of the food chain on the Isle. As long as she stayed there, she could do almost whatever she wanted, even if someone lower than her would never be able to get away with it. 

When she was seven she broke someone's arm for saying she was a boy. She didn't know, didn't understand, then, what made her different from other girls, but she certainly already knew that she was one. But eventually she found people who would call her their leader her anyway, address her as captain, even people who would sit with her late at night when she panicked and couldn't stand without her legs collapsing underneath her, and her face shown with tears. And then she would go out in the morning and pretend, and hope one day it wouldn't just be a mask. 

Her mother didn't care who she was. Boy or girl, as long as she didn't do anything to disrupt her mother's business she didn't matter. She knew it was better then how some of the other children had it, and was glad for it. She had free reign of the bar as long as she didn't chase costumers away, so she did what she wanted. And if that meant bringing her entire crew in to the bar at two in the morning and singing the bawdiest songs they could think of, then so be it. Villains didn't care. Hell, sometimes they joined them in singing.

Now, she thinks, if she ever gets to Auradon she'll make sure every other kid on the Isle comes with her. None of them deserved this, but they do deserve a chance for something better. She wouldn't be Mal, wouldn't leave the rest of them behind if she had a chance to get out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, yes, I really love Uma.


	3. Evie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for eating disorder. Evie was trained to look at herself through the lens of beauty, and to believe that she was fat. It didn't play out well.

When they were on the Isle, food was such a rarity she didn't worry about eating, even if her mother called her fat. Even if she was fat. But then they were on Auradon, and there was food available any time she wanted it, and they were expected to eat at every meal time. For a while it didn't matter, and she gained weight. She was happy, and learned how not to care so much about how she looked. Gradually taught herself to go out in public with less and less makeup on.  She fit in, and it worked, and no one questioned her anymore. She went on dates with Doug and learned to love herself. 

 

( ~~But nothing lasts forever~~.)

 

One day she steps onto the scale out of curiosity, thinking it won't matter to her what it says. Instead she finds herself staring at the number for so long she doesn't remember what time it was when she started later. Eventually, she stumbles into the bathroom, standing in front of the mirror and staring at herself. Her round cheeks, cheekbones no longer clearly visible. The way her waist has thickened. And she strips, rushing and discarding her clothes on the floor.  She stares again. Once, she could count most, if not all of her rib. Most other bones had been visible too. She had liked it that way, she thinks vaguely, had been pretty that way. Now her thighs touch, and she cannot fit her fingers around her wrists. The clothes she had made when they got here. She'd had to let them out, proof she'd been gaining to much wait. Her thoughts feel almost feverish, rushing around her head in jumbled heaps, yet each one clear as crystal. 

Later that day, at dinner, she sits there with the others. She doesn't eat. She doesn't want to, she tells herself. It will be better this way, she tells herself. When Doug looks at her with a frown and asks why she isn't eating, she says she had eaten a little bit earlier, and didn't feel hungry now. He insists, and she takes a apple slowly, forcing herself to take a bite and swallow it. He smiles at her, pressing a small kiss to her cheek and turning away. She feels awful about herself. 

Over time the weight drops, and she smiles at herself in the mirror, painting concealer onto her face like a mask. She tells herself that she feels better now. It isn't truly a surprise that no one notices. They don't say anything, at least. 

 

( ~~Why should they~~?)


	4. Carlos

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally posted on my Tumblr, i-am-me-i-am-sam.

**Carlos De Vil Headcannons**

 

  *  Once he graduates highschool he starts a rescue home for pets
  *  He can never decide on a sexuality, so he just calls himself queer and learns to steamroll over anyone who objects
  *  Quits Tourney as soon as he gets the chance
  *  Holds a funeral for Dude when he dies
  *  Evie eventually convinces him to see a therapist, surprise surprise he’s diagnosed with anxiety
  *  Also maybe a personality disorder (That I won’t write about because I don’t know enough to do them justice)
  *  Never able to shake the habit of eating like his food could be stolen from him any minute
  *  His first female crush was Evie
  *  His first male crush was Jay
  *  Never told either of them about it
  *  Is polyamorous
  *  Wants children but terrified he’d be an awful father
  *  Doesn’t know how to explain the above
  *  One day he shaves off all his hair because it reminds him of his mother
  *  Has trouble trusting people for the rest of his life
  *  Designs several video games, releases them for free and never tells people he made them
  *  Drinks to much coffee and doesn’t sleep enough
  *  Tries to avoid learning to drive for as long as he can
  *  Asks Doug to teach him how to swim
  *  To his surprise he’s a natural at it
  *  Eventually he takes up competitive swimming
  *  Takes cooking classes
  *  Always the first choice to model Evie’s designs
  *  Dyes his hair every color he can think of
  *  Absolutely refuses to take an office job
  *  Terrified of losing his mind like his mother did
  *  He’s seen the pictures Anita has, of a shining, brilliant girl (A rising star, just like him)
  *  Sometimes he’s glad he’s overlooked in favor of the others
  *  That way, if things go wrong, the public won’t be watching his every move
  *  Buys a plot of land and designs his own house
  *  Might not live happily ever after, but he does live a good life in the end




	5. Carlos Part 2

He never  _recovers_ , exactly, from his childhood on the Isle, but he likes to think that he is at least better now then he was then. He no longer fears everything he comes near, and has learned to be brave, and stubborn, and stand up to other people. Over the years he has filled out, grown taller, and no longer looks like the lost little orphan he used to be. Sometimes, though, he still finds himself curled up in his bed, the idea of getting up to exhausting to contemplate. But those days grow fewer and fewer, with longer and longer stretches of time between them. He gets better. He falls in and out of love, and learns what it means to live. It isn't always easy, like he used to think life should be, but he knows better now, knows that life shouldn't always be smooth sailing. And it gets better. If he cries when his daughter is born, then what does it matter? There is no one here to tell him not to. Time flies, and he finds a job he loves and does well at it, and exercises and loves and does everything that makes his heart sing. 

 

(He learns to live.)


	6. Jay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally posted on my Tumblr. Something else will be up for him later today.

**Jay Headcanons**

  * Has a beanie collection
  *  Also a beanie baby collection
  *  “Not the haIR”
  *  Probably gets a Tourney scholarship to college
  *  Will flirt with anything that moves
  *  His guilty pleasure is listening to Acapella music
  *  Takes an internship at a bank during college
  *  Gets psuedo-adopted by Aladdin’s family
  *  Goes there for every holiday and brings all his partners there to meet them
  *  Anyone who questions it has to face Jasmine
  *  The first place he lives in by himself is an apartment
  *  Years later he buys and renovates his own house
  *  Works for a construction company for several years
  *  Loves to grow plants
  *  Meets Evie for brunch every Thursday
  *  One day Carlos gets him a tiny kitten and from then on it goes everywhere with him
  *  Actually really likes wearing suits and dressing up
  *  Sometimes forgets that he grew up on the Isle and always feels absolutely horrible about it
  *  “How could I forget where I come from?!”
  *  Attends therapy for anger issues
  *  Suffers from kleptomania for the rest of his life (“Old habits die hard.”)
  *  Never regrets choosing good
  *  Learns to wrestle
  *  Thrives




	7. Jay Part 2

Life was different here. He knew that. Yet sometimes, he could feel himself slipping into the reactions and habits of life on the Isle. He could never pinpoint why it happened, only that it did. But he had pledged to never give up, to make his own future. So he would take a deep breath and shove his way through it, shoving that old way of life away. And it was worth it, he told himself. He enjoyed it here. He fit in with the jocks, and flirted his way to dates and more. Slowly but surely the instincts ingrained in him gave way to more rational thought. Thinking what he did and said through became just part of who he was, something he was expected to do. Yet there were always moments, when he was on the field during Tourney or when he was wrestling when he was nothing more than the thief he had been raised as. When instinct ruled and rational thought was left in the dust. 

He met Aziz through Tourney, after that first practice that got him on the teen. Surprisingly, they were fast friends and got along well. Eventually, the other boy convinced him to come with him to his place over summer break, meet his family. He had been nervous. He didn't understand that at the time, because nervous was hardly a word he used regularly. But... Aladdin had seen something in him, something he said reminded him of himself. Jasmine had smiled and asked him what his favorite food was. They had been...kind. Something he hadn't even thought to expect. And from then on he was expected to come over for every holiday, no matter what. 

When he married, he wanted a small ceremony, only the most important people there. Instead, Evie happened, and it felt like half the kingdom was there. His partner had only smirked at him, laughing when he got dragged into planning things like colors and coordinated outfits. They got out of all of that, by virtue of being a diplomat overseas. Yet... He wouldn't change out his wedding, or his life, had turned out for anything. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bro I don't know.


	8. Ben

He'd been trained for the crown since before he could walk. He spoke three languages before he was five, ten before he was fifteen. While his classmates went to parties and enjoyed being teenagers, he spent any moment that wasn't taken up by school with meetings and preparation to become king. Even when his parents tried to make sure he had a clear schedule to enjoy himself, he only ever got a few hours at most. He barely slept. His temper frayed, he often found it hard to resist just screaming to get everyone to shut up. Yet he pushed it all deep inside himself into a corner and smiled at the world, trying to see everything through a lens of kindness. So when Audrey asked him out, he said yes, taking the chance to act like the teenager he was. Realistically, he knew he would never like her enough to date her in the long term, but at the time it seemed like a good idea. But the dates had been draining, every conversation he had with her told him she really was just a normal teenager. Maybe the love potion was the reason he broke up with her, but even so, he had still felt better then he had in months after it.  When the potion washed off in the enchanted lake, he had watched Mal with confusion for the rest of the date, not understanding why she would do such a thing. 

Yet he couldn't bring himself to be mad about it. No matter why she had done it, it was clear now that she did feel _something_ for him, at least. So he had ended up falling for her. And now she had left. Gone back to the Isle. He had to save her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I could NOT figure out what to write for Ben, so this is probably awful.


	9. Ben Part 2

**Ben Headcanons**

 

 

  * Speaks at least ten languages
  * Is always the straight friend if the group
  * On the swimming team
  * Had never dated anyone before Audrey
  * Spends every spare moment he had preparing to become King
  * Chooses to look at everyone in a good light
  * Isn’t actually as naive as he acts
  * Inherited his father’s Beast strength
  * Has a huge sweet tooth
  * Loves to read
  * Not all that excited to be king
  * What’s sleep
  * Hates the taste of coffee
  * He loves tea though
  * Wants a lot of children
  * Wants to write fiction books
  * Knows how to play piano
  * Loves video games
  * Knows how to repair clothing
  * Really athletic
  * But hates the gym
  * Knows lots of French lullabies
  * Calls Mal “Ma petit dragon” as a term of endearment
  * Doesn’t actually have a license
  * Enjoys baking with his mother




	10. Jane

She was fae, old and young and  _powerful_. But she had to hide it. Sometimes she thinks if it weren't for the magic ban she wouldn't be so...so  _useless_ , but how do you explain that? How do you explain that the fae are  _made_ to perform magic? They're made of it, for goodness sake! It's in their blood. In  _her_ blood. But instead she shoves it deep inside her and pretends it doesn't exist. That her pointed ears and translucent wings don't exist. Half the time, it ends up seeming like  _she_ doesn't even exist. Like she's traded her existence for safety. For her near-invisibility to her classmates. But she had no other choice, and...she knew it. So she buried her head in books and learned to act the part and tried to pretend she didn't have magic. 

And sometimes, it would catch up to her. All the magic she pressed deep inside her. Catching her unaware, it would boil to the surface. Most of the time, things got destroyed. Most of the time, it happened at night. So her mother claimed she had an  _anxiety disorder_ , one that would be worsened by rooming with someone. And so now she had another part to play, and, oh, how she  _boiled_ with rage now. But she couldn't do anything about it. Like it or not, Auradon, and Auradon Prep, were no longer equipped to handle the fae. Or any other magic creature. Thanks to the _"Magic Ban"_ anything they might have once been able to do to accommodate her was gone now. Her anger simmered below the surface, and she screamed into her pillow at night. One day, when Auradon decided she was old enough to make her own decisions she would leave. She would go somewhere where she didn't have to hide. But...for now she pretended. 


	11. Lonnie

Lonnie is a smart girl, her mother's daughter. She knows how to fight, but also when not to. Diplomacy has been trained into her since she was born, and she is always aware of the weight she carries on her shoulders. It's a good thing, she thinks sometimes, that she is not the oldest. If she was, she is sure she would crack under the pressure. Strong as she might be, she wouldn't be able to do that. When she interacts with the VKs, she ends up being a pioneer of sorts. Audrey and Chad might have sway, but only with a tiny portion of the school. She could control a far larger number of people, if she wanted to. But she doesn't. Yet, her example sets the way for how the majority of Auradon Prep's students treat the new students. She didn't mean to do it, but she's at least glad it means fewer people will be so awful to them.  _Small miracles_ , she reminds herself with a deep breath. 

Her parents fight. A lot. When she was younger, she thought it was normal. After all, why would her parents do anything that wasn't normal? Even then, she knew how hard they tried to fit in with the other royal families. It wasn't until she started Auradon Prep that she realized otherwise, that other people's parents didn't fight like hers. So she learned to rarely mention home, to make a name for herself. And it worked. 


	12. Audrey

Audrey has never fit well with her mother. She genuinely likes pink, and Starbucks, and sewing, and all the girly things princesses are supposed to like. Her mother doesn't understand that. Her mother would be perfectly happy wearing flannel and living on a farm for the rest of her life. Yet, her daughter could never imagine that. So she fought her way to going to Auradon Prep and living at the dorms there. It hadn't been easy, but she thought it was worth it.   
She had asked out Ben because she liked him, but also because it took the pressure off of her to find a boyfriend. She knew she would never marry him, she certainly never wanted to be queen, but she did like him. He was nice, and kind, and funny, and made her smile. Even better, he didn't care if she was polyamorous, if she had a girlfriend too. She felt light, for the first time in a long time, when she dated him. And she was hurt, really hurt, when he broke up with her in front of an entire school and got together with Mal instead. Spitefully, she had gotten together with Chad, a reaction far to quick.   
But now that was all over, and even if her life wasn't easy, she found it no longer worth it to put in the effort to be queen bee. Instead, she stayed there simply because she chose to be there. She didn't regret it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, this is probably awful. I don't really like Audrey, but I don't want to just skip a day.


	13. Gil

All things considered, Gaston was hardly the worst father on the Isle. By Auradon standards he would be thought of as awful, but he really wasn't. He cared about his sons, in the twisted way he cared about people who weren't himself. He taught them French. He made sure they had food when they were younger. Even if he was narcissistic and a generally bad person, he had grown up in a small town, and in small towns taking care of children was important. So his children were considered well of in terms of being cared for, compared to most others on the Isle. Gil knew all of these things. Yet that didn't decrease his hatred of his father. 

Gil  was smart. He was good at advanced math, and he enjoyed reading. Not that most people knew. Smart people could double-cross the people they worked for. People who were all brawn and no brain couldn't. It kept him safe to play dumb, no matter how much he hated it. Harry and Uma knew, now that they were so close. But for years the only person who knew had been Dizzy. He had only known her at first because his father went there to get his hair dyed when it started turning grey, but eventually he had become something close to friends with the younger girl. Not that it would ever be admitted out loud. 

When he was younger, he didn't know what love was. He thought it was adoration, the sort of thing his mother and Lefou showered Gaston with, but he knew better now. But sometimes he slipped into old habits, and he knew it wasn't healthy. He would always be grateful for Uma and Harry's patience with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, if they wanted Gil to be in character, he would have actually had a speaking line by now.


	14. Harry

Harry learned early on that his father was never someone to cross. He still had long, thin scars from that lesson. ( ~~He hadn't chosen to carry a hook because he wanted to copy his father.~~ ) And his sisters, they weren't any better. In fact, they were worse, because to his father they were better. It was years before he trusted again. Three years, really not that many, but long enough to establish that he was ruthless. Also long enough to make sure he would never be called "Lucille" again. Turned out, if you attacked people, they left you alone. 

But almost exactly three years later, he found himself drawn into trusting again. (Even though he still feared betrayal.) Uma, it was always Uma. The girl who smelled like the sea, yet had never truly been near it. The girl who had pulled him slowly from the hole of loneliness he'd fallen into without even noticing. Within days, he was attending school again, the first time in years. And not Dragon Hall, either. No, _their_ school, the sea school. A school where they were actually taught, where they learned more then just "How to be evil" ( ~~Wasn't that what their parents were for?~~ ) When he stepped into a class for the first time in so long standing side by side with Uma, no one spoke. No one said anything, no one dared to meet their eyes. They weren't Mal and her gang, but they were still formidable. Together, nearly unstoppable. As if though it needed to be proven, the second day, someone (he had never learned their name) had walked up to him, greeted him as Lucille. Before dusk, their body hung from the prow of his father's old ship, beached on the sand. He lived on that ship, alone after his father disappeared inland, to distraught to be so near the sea he would never touch again. His siblings had already left long before, and he was left behind, not even caring anymore. But now there was Uma, calling him her ally, calling him important. (" _Together we could rule this trash heap!_ " She would crow, stabbing her sword toward the soot filled sky.)

He wasn't sure when, exactly, being allies became being friends, and then being more. He knew, at least, that the being more came after Gil joined them, but that was it. Gil. Muscle, brawn, possibly the smartest person on the island, or at least close to it. (There was always Evie or Freddie.) The brains behind most everything they did after he joined them. Pillaging and terrorizing, that's what they were good at, it was what they did to survive. On the Isle, there wasn't exactly any other choice. Any other way to survive. So they ruled the only way they knew how. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This, actually, is notes and headcanons I'm coming up with for a fanfic I might write featuring the pirates put into a readable form.


	15. Doug

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is literally based entirely off of the fact that Doug is supposed to be both shy and a nerd and yet plays trumpet.

Doug's childhood was simple, and straightforward. He knew what was expected of him for as long as he remembered. Before Auradon Prep, his life plan mostly consisted of eventually ending up working in the mines, whether he wanted to or not. His own feelings didn't need to be taken into account. But then suddenly they did. And so he put to much pressure on himself to be perfect and do everything right. That had landed him a one way ticket to the nearest hospital. He'd wrestled with his mental health, struggling to reconcile his childhood plans and his options now. He got out eventually, but it left it's scars. He was quieter now, shyer too. He retreated to his music and books. The world started to leave him alone, and he in turn left the world alone. Even now, with Evie, he was still quiet, but he could feel the scars fading quicker then they had in a long time. 


	16. Chad

Chad's father taught him two things: Act like you are the most important person in the room and you will be, and that the ruling class would be nothing without magic. (His father was very much against the magic ban.) Comparatively, his mother had taught him more, but none of those lessons had truly managed to hit him with as much importance. 

Sports were one of the most important things to him. They let him forget about everything except the game. In those split seconds when his focus narrowed to making that one move, he was happiest. Not very many people understood that, but that was okay. He'd survive. What was important was that he knew. 

For some reason, he fit in with the magic kids. Jordan and Jane were two of his closest friends. He didn't have magic, not like them, he wasn't fae or a genie. But they showed him how to use magic, how to manipulate the energy of the universe the same way they did as easily as breathing. And slowly he leaned, gradually and gradually the process becoming easier, more natural to him. He couldn't do it in public, but in the privacy of the room the girls shared he practiced. And suddenly there was something other than sports that made him truly happy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, credit to screaminginternally for making me think of a Chad/Jane friendship, which is now one of my favorite things. Also, that being how magic works in the Auradon universe is also one of my favorite things.


	17. Other: Jordan

Things Jordan knows:

  * She is far from royalty, but that made her childhood easier then almost anyone who went to Auradon Prep
  * How to bend but not break
  * Revenge
  * Girls are more fun to kiss then boys
  * Magic can change more about your body then just the outside
  * Jane will always be there for someone even if they'e hurt her
  * Ben isn't as naive as he always looks
  * No matter how you dress, if you don't talk you'll be overlooked
  * It isn't worth it to try and fit it
  * The magic ban is never actually enforced on anyone except the poor
  * Her parents love her unconditionally



 

She doesn't fit in with most other people, doesn't dress up for school every day or act with the most etiquette at every moment. For a long time, she tried anyway. It wasn't until high school started that she stopped. Realizing that it really didn't matter to her had been freeing, like growing wings and flying away. Or, at least, that's what she thought it might be like. 

  
Technically, Jordan doesn't actually do any magic in Auradon. The space inside her lamp exists in between dimensions, and outside of time and space. So, when she does magic there she really isn't breaking any laws. Not even the King himself could accuse her of it. If there is one thing her parents make sure she knows, it is how to bend the rules just enough so that she isn't breaking them. So, therefore, when she does magic in her and Jane's dorm, she is breaking the law. But she ignores that, because she's never seen Jane smile like that except for in the privacy of their dorm when they're both using magic.


	18. Mal/Evie

On the Isle, it made sense, in an odd sort of way, to keep those you trusted close to you. Prevent backstabbing, all that. It didn't make sense, though, to be consumed with thoughts of another person. It was a distraction, and made you weak. Yet, thoughts of a certain blue-haired someone kept sneaking into Mal's mind. She tried to ignore it, because being obsessed with another person like this wasn't exactly evil, but nothing seemed to help. Still, though, when her thoughts wandered that was where they went. 

 

There was no actual reason that Evie could pin down for her attachment to the fae girl. It didn't make any sort of logical sense, yet it was always there, in the corner of her mind. She tried to ignore it, knowing it would lead to nothing other then pain for her, but it still lingered. And she wondered sometimes.... If it would always be this way. 

( ~~It would~~.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is awful, because I honestly don't ship Malvie in the canon universe, but I wanted to get something out anyways.


	19. Jay/Carlos

Most people didn't actually know that they were dating. A lot of them just looked right past the way they acted together and thought they were just two boys who were friends. After all, Jay flirted with anything that moved, and Carlos obviously liked Jane, right? (Open relationships, it turned out, weren't common in Auradon.) So they didn't mention it much. Although, they still acted the same way. People here just didn't understand that it meant they were together. That was okay though, because they did. 

Jay loved Carlos, and Carlos loved Jay. It was that simple to them. Of course, they had never used that term until Auradon, but it was still what their feelings had been. They were okay with that. They spent every moment together, and they were content with their life. They settled into routine, and slowly their scars faded, although they never left completely. They went on dates and learned to just exist, to be okay with themselves and with who they were. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I...don't know.


	20. Ben/Mal

Despite the love potion that started their relationship, Ben truly, completely loves Mal. He knows this with every fiber of his being, in the way he feels around her. He gives her small gifts and tokens to prove it to her, to try and make her happy. He loves to see her smile. And he is obsessed, he knows, but can't bring himself to care, because if it doesn't hurt anyone then why does it matter? The public gets used to seeing her on his arm, and he breathes easier knowing that at least they won't tear her apart. He doesn't expect her to crack under the pressure. She was strong, and so he hadn't noticed her pain. He regretted that, now. This was his fault, he had to fix it. Had to bring her back. And he would. No matter what happened, and then he would fix the things that had driven her to this, and listen to her and make this better. The important thing here was going to have to be listening to her now. He saw that he hadn't been doing that now, and he would have to fix that. He couldn't let her continue like this, it would hurt her. He had to save her, fix this mess. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ben is blaming himself for Mal running away, and his thoughts are mostly just replaying on a loop.


	21. Jay/Mal/Evie/Carlos

Mal was the leader, fierce and unforgiving and the strongest of them all. She glared and never backed down and clawed her way to the top and then held onto it with a grip stronger then diamonds and dragged them up with her. She made people stay clear of them and kept them safe.Giving the rarest thing of all: her loyalty.

Jay was the protector, slipping in between them and their opponents, cradling their faces in his palms and searching them over for injuries. He brought them what they needed and held them in the dead of night, always there when he was needed most. Presenting them with tokens he'd stolen from others. 

Evie was the distraction, brave and bold and beautiful. Breathtaking. She kissed them softly and bandaged wounds and flirted her way out of any dangerous situation she encountered. Their little butterfly. Bringing a lightness to day-to-day life, no matter what happened. 

Carlos was the brain, thought-process running at the speed of light, always thinking of new ideas and trying to put them into motion. He never gave up, planning down to the last second. Sitting curled up in one of their laps and tinkering with something whenever they were together.


	22. Harry/Mal

Harry had a thing for fierce girls, he could admit, but seemingly, fierce girls also have a thing for him. Uma had claimed him as soon as she had met him, and before that there was Mal. She had moved slower, but with no less effect. Controlling his life simply because she had wanted to. And he had let her. If he were to put a word to his old feelings for her now, he would say "Obsession." But back then he would have stammered a reply about he didn't even know what. He would admit, though, that the time he had spent with Mal was far from the worst time of his life, maybe even go as far as saying he enjoyed it. He preferred not to think about it, though. That portion of his life was over and gone, regardless how he felt about it. The Mal who had claimed him so fiercely as her own was long gone. 


	23. Harry/Gil/Uma

On the Isle, any feeling that wasn't negative was frowned upon, seen as something villains shouldn't feel. Gil knew that. He also knew how he felt about Harry and Uma. He loved them. If that made him weak, he couldn't bring himself to care. He was stronger, really, with them than without. He knew that too. It was simple if he didn't think about it. He protected them and helped them and did everything for them that he could, to show them his feelings without saying it, because if he said it someone could hear it and use it against him. And they knew. They understood, and acted the same towards him, and honestly he has no clue where he'd be without them. Dead, maybe. That seems like a logical thing that he would be without them beside him. He was practically dead already when they'd found him, made him part of their crew. 

 

For Harry, emotions are complicated. They were ( ~~quite literally~~ ) beat out of him when he was younger, and now he finds it hard even to parse out what he's feeling to himself. But he tries, for the other two, because they deserve it. So he pushes through the tangled mess, finds one thing he knows to be true, and holds onto that thing with all his might. That thing? The fact that the idea of losing Gil or Uma terrifies him, and that he would do anything to prevent it. That might not be an emotion, but it's still a truth. And so he chases away things that threatens his lifestyle and tries not to think to deeply about it.

 

Uma is different from other people on the isle. She feels everything to much, to vibrant. Now that she's older, it's easier to push those bright bright bright feelings aside and pretend they aren't there. Except around her boys. Gil and Harry give her the opportunity to feel and be and not ignore the things she knows to be true. And if she loves anyone, it's them. Not herself, no, and certainly not her mother. But them? She loves them, and will do anything she has to to get them off the isle, to a better life. No matter what it takes, she protects them even though they can do it themselves, and places herself at the top so no one can get to her boyfriends. And it works, to her own surprise.


	24. Chad/Doug

After Audrey breaks up with him and leaves, Chad doesn't date again for a few months. He thinks he did, truly, love her, and knows at least that he is heartbroken over how things turned out between them. And it's simple enough, at first, to just not date, but that doesn't last long. Because  _of course_ someone new catches his eye the second he even starts to think maybe he doesn't miss Audrey as much anymore. And Doug is as far from Audrey as you can get, really. Well, except he cares about his looks too, but in a different way, a difference Chad doesn't know how to explain. But eventually he asks the other boy out, because as close as he might be to Evie, Chad knows for a fact that they aren't together. And their relationship is easy, in a way he's never experienced before but that he thinks fits the two of them perfectly. 


End file.
